It was Button's team-mate Lewis Hamilton who led for most of the race, after overtaking pole-sitter Sebastian Vettel around the outside of turn two in the early stages of the race. The reigning world champion and current world championship leader initially struggled in the damp conditions and dropped to third early on.

Hamilton looked set for back-to-back victories until he made a wrong tyre choice and received a drive-through penalty for forcing Force India’s Paul Di Resta off the circuit. He ultimately finished in fourth place, just ahead of Mark Webber and nearly 30 seconds behind third-place man Fernando Alonso.

Toro Rosso’s Sebastien Buemi started 23rd and finished in an impressive eighth, while young Australian Daniel Ricciardo finished ahead of his HRT team-mate Vitantonio Luizi and Virgin’s Jerome D'Ambrosio in only his third grand prix.